If it weren't for the steps taken by Germany and its allies, Russia would have invaded Ukraine earlier, argued the former Chancellor.
The Chancellor of Germany and the President of Russia are together.
In her first interview since leaving office, she defended her opposition to starting the NATO membership process for Ukraine in 2008.
According to a translation of her speech, she said that Putin would have reacted angrily if Ukraine entered the NATO alliance because of the corruption and lack of a stable democratic government.
The talks on self-government for two regions of eastern Ukraine that were partially taken over by Russian-backed rebels started in the summer of 2014, and were brokered by Germany.
She conceded she had failed to build a "security architecture" to prevent the invasion, but she wouldn't apologize for the steps she took.
The invasion of Ukraine was a mistake on the part of Russia.
There wasn't strong support for such measures at the time, according to the AP.
The German chancellor said that she had tried to work in the direction of preventing mischievous behavior. If diplomacy fails, this doesn't mean that it was wrong. I don't see why I should say that was incorrect. I won't apologize.
Russia supplied more than half of Germany's natural gas, 25% of its oil and 50% of its hard coal in the year 2011. Russia could be tied to a rules-based international system if trade relations with Germany were strengthened. Critics said that the German government prioritised economic interests over international concerns due to the country's dependence on Russian energy. Germany was hesitant to support restrictions on Russian energy imports due to the fact that they would hurt the EU more. Germany plans to ban Russian oil imports by the end of the year and hopes to end its dependence on Russian natural gas by the year's end. Russia could lose tens of billions of dollars in revenue due to the cancellation of the still-uncompletedNord Stream 2 gas line from Russia to Germany.
The president of Germany called the support for the second Nord Stream a mistake.
"'I don't blame myself': Germany's Chancellor defends her country's legacy on Russia and Ukraine"
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